Noticeboard

A new appointment system went 'live' on Monday 3rd December. Please bear with the reception staff whilst they get used to this new system.

From 19th September 2018 the practice will have a new and upgraded telephone system. All calls to the surgery should be made using 01460 72435 and choosing the relevant option.

Symphony Healthcare Services Ltd

Symphony Healthcare Services Ltd welcomes Crewkerne Health Centre.

CREWKERNE HEALTH CENTRE JOINS SYMPHONY HEALTHCARE SERVICES

At the beginning of July, we welcomed Crewkerne Health Centre to our organisation.

Symphony Healthcare Services (SHS) was set up in April 2016 to support primary care and GP practices like Crewkerne Health Centre who were struggling to cope with increasing patient numbers, more complex medical conditions and recruiting GPs.

What is Symphony Healthcare Services - is it private healthcare?

No. The health care services that we provide our patients are funded by the NHS like any other GP practice and we work very closely with both NHS England and the Care Quality Commission to ensure that the care we provide meets the high standards set.

SHS was set up to support primary care to be able to meet patient demand now and into the future. We are also talking to a number of other GP practices to see if we may be able to support them too.

Why is it sometimes difficult to get an appointment with my doctor?

Across the country it is becoming harder to recruit new GPs and many existing GPs and GP partners are retiring or looking to work in a less pressured environment.

In addition, our demographics are changing. With new treatments and medicines now available, many people are now living longer and in rural counties like Somerset we have a growing population who are over the age of 65. This has also created an additional strain on primary care with the average number of appointments per patient per year increasing as we get older.

What are SHS doing to make sure I can access the health care I need when I need it?

Being part of a larger organisation means that we can help to support GP practices like Crewkerne Health Centre to recruit sufficient GPs as well as looking at different ways of caring for our patients. We are also introducing new specialist staff in addition to GPs who can provide the care that you need without adding to the pressure on our GPs - remember you don't always need to see a doctor first!